A STOURBRIDGE grandfather who set fire to a Dudley tyre company where he was manager to cover up his £30,000 fiddle has been jailed for three years.

David Bratt carried out the fraud because he was unhappy with his working conditions and angry about the salary he was picking up for his duties, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

The 58-year-old started the fire at the Hi-Q depot in King Street just hours after being rumbled when discrepancies were found in the company accounts.

Judge Helen Hughes said he set ablaze paperwork and records in the office causing a serious fire that could have had "devastating" consequences.

She told Bratt he had been "reckless" and there would have been a "major incident" but for the prompt arrival of firefighters.

Bratt, who lived in Jason Road, Wollescote, before moving to Somerset admitted fraud involving a total of £30,210 and he denied arson.

But following a four-day trial the jury found him guilty on a unanimous verdict.

The judge told him: "You used your knowledge of the company system to get financial benefits and then you set fire to company records in what was a semi-residential area near to a bus route.”

Geoffrey Dann, prosecuting, said Bratt, a man of previous good character, fraudulently raised orders for 133 tyres which he then sold on for £100 each.

Simon Hanns, defending, said Bratt "fell prey to temptation" because he felt he was not being paid the right wages for all the work he carried out for the company.

Mr Hanns added: “As a result he did something he has never done before.”

He told the court his client maintained he had not started the fire and added: “He knew he would be found out for the fraud so there was no need for him to commit the arson."

The Judge told Bratt he had brought "shame and distress" to his family and only immediate jail was appropriate.